How to Make Cheddar Cheese Sauce

How to Make Cheddar Cheese Sauce

Here’s the best way to make a simple homemade cheese sauce. Use it for anything from queso to macaroni and cheese!

Ingredients

1/4

cup unsalted butter

1/4

cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour

3

cups whole milk, warm

10

to 12 ounces cheddar cheese, grated

Salt and pepper

Directions

1Add butter and flour to a medium pot over medium heat. Let the butter melt and whisk the flour into the butter. Let it cook for 3-4 minutes until mixture turns a light tan color and smells a bit nutty.

2Slowly start drizzling warm milk into the flour mixture, whisking constantly. Add the milk in a constant stream to avoid lumping. Start with 2-1/2 cups of milk and, depending on thickness, add the other 1/2 later if needed. Let the mixture heat as you whisk, thickening over a few minutes.

3Once the sauce is the consistency of a light gravy, add the grated cheddar cheese and whisk it into the sauce so it melts evenly.

4Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.

5Use the warm cheese sauce with pasta, or put it in a dish and serve with bread cubes or chips as a queso dip!

Tips

You can never go wrong with a good cheddar cheese for a cheese sauce, but try out other cheeses as well. Something like Gruyere goes really well in a macaroni and cheese, while something like Monterey Jack is classic for a Tex-Mex queso.